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Thursday, June 05, 2008

Youth League Starts Season

By Harold Smith
Mountain View Telegraph
      They grow up too fast. Better enjoy it while you can.
    The Moriarty Girls Fast-Pitch Association will celebrate the start of its 2008 youth softball season with an opening ceremony at the city's sports complex on Saturday at 10 a.m.
    “After the ceremony, we'll have four (simultaneous) games using all four of our fields,” said Joel Delgadillo, the league's spokesman and fifth-year MGFPA board member. “This is our seventh season. Right now, we're at 132 (players). We had 136 last year, but we didn't have any 14-and-under teams last year, and we do this year. But we don't have 8-and-under this year, and we did last year.”
    There's still time to sign up, particularly in the 8U and 12U age groups. Players of all experience levels are welcome to participate, Delgadillo said.
    MGFPA is associated with the Amateur Softball Association.
    “I think we're staying strong, staying steady,” Delgadillo said. “I think we're not losing a lot of girls. And our level of play is so much better than it was when we first started.”
    The MGFPA season-ending league “city” tournament will begin on July 29 and 31 at the complex. The divisional championship games — for 10U, 12U and 14U — will be played at 10 a.m. on Aug. 2, also at the complex.
    Delgadillo is even more upbeat about the state of the league this year.
    “We'll have a real concession stand this year with a hot dog machine, a nachos machine and a snow cone machine,” he said. “But the fields do need some work. The city is helping us as much as they can. They put some good, red dirt down for us on two of the fields. We'll try to do the others later.
    “And we're trying to get (an ASA) state-qualifier tournament,” Delgadillo continued. “If we get it, it will be in late June. It'd be for all ages, from 10-and-under up.”
    The sourcing of umpires has always been an issue for the local league.
    “We're still using AABC (American Amateur Baseball Congress) umpires, and we have a few parent volunteers umpiring,” Delgadillo said. “But we'd eventually like to have our own league umpires, ones that know and live by ASA rules. Now, AABC (via the Moriarty Baseball League) helps us. But AABC games have priority for them. If they can, they help us. Our goal is to get our own umpires.”
    The league's teams, after this weekend, will play on Tuesdays and Thursdays through to the league tourney.
    The 6U T-ball division teams include the Pink Ponies, Wildcats and Honey Bees. The 10U squads are the Bears, Stars and Wildcats.
    There are enough girls to have 2½ teams in the 12U age group. Right now, the girls make up two squads, the Dolphins and the Elite, but the Dolphins might change their moniker, Delgadillo said.
    A third 12U team could be added if enough players sign up this week and next. The oldest age group, 14U, is comprised of High Maintenance, the Pistols and TNT.
    “It's an effort every year in the beginning, the same thing every year,” Delgadillo said. “This year, we started on our first registration day with only 20 girls signing up. We thought, 'Oh, that's not too good.' But then we got 40, 50 the next week, and pretty soon you have a league.”
    For information on playing MGFPA softball or to volunteer as an umpire, call Delgadillo at 264-1119.
   

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